Wk 09: Moving right along...

A lot of givens and a few surprises this past week as the season rolls on. The top teams seemed to walk through their opponents this week with ease but we did see #16 fall to an un-ranked and a few close calls and last minute heart-breakers for un-defeated teams.

BYU is finally showing some consistency on both sides of the ball. Their win on Friday against Boise State looked balanced and they should be able to carry that the remainder of the season. They'll take their newfound success against two ranked teams in teh next four weeks (and Lee Corso said they don't stand a chance against Notre Dame). We'll have to play the game and see...

Mizzou looked like the surprise team of the season and especially of the SEC...until the 'Ol Ball Coach put in his hobbled up starting QB to turn the game around, go to OT and pull off the win. Mizzou controlled both sides for three quarters only to learn the hard way that you never get cocky when playing the Gamecocks. (If it's any consolation, Mizzou, I gave up on the 'Ol Ball Coach as well. I turned it off in the 3rd quarter only to find out Sunday morning what an exciting match-up I missed).

'Bama, the Ducks and FSU continue to roll towards a title match with Ohio State, Miami, Baylor, Fresno and N. Illinois praying for a few upsets of those top teams. Un-defeateds FSU and Miami meet up next week, Oregon still has a couple of tests, and although I think 'Bama has a strong healthy team and a great coaching staff they could still be tripped up by LSU or Auburn in the coming weeks.

Wk 08: Dashed Dreams

Many a hope and dream were dashed this past week. Players, coaches, fans, moms and dads could only watch as title and conference hopes slipped away. But a whole new cast took their place as new hopes and dreams, and some pretty good teams, were born.

Nine of the Top 25 showed up in the L column. Five of those were from the SEC; four of those were from the SEC-East. UGA, UF and SC have controlled the SEC-East for many years but they each lost to those considered mid-dwellers of the SEC: Vandy, Missouri and UT, respectively. Wow - I'd be willing to bet that is a first. Then LSU lost to UM for yet another SEC surprise. SC and LSU both lost on last-minute field goals and UGA had yet another chance to win in the final minute (their fourth in four games) but couldn't do it this time. Turnovers, poor defenses and last minute perfect execution was the root of this SEC shake-up.

Utah lost to un-ranked Arizona after stomping Stanford last week. Louisville also lost to the un-ranked. Ohio State trailed for three quarters to an un-ranked Iowa. Missouri looks for real (though they still face SC and TA&M). Florida State looked like the FSU of the 90s. Baylor showed up in the Top 10 yet they have a tough row to hoe the next six weeks. UCF, Auburn, Fresno State and Texas Tech are also making a lot of noise and turning heads. All in all it was the type of weekend we have come to expect in college football.

BYU turned in another good performance that garnered them a few votes in the polls. Not quite the balanced attack one would hope for but a fun game filled with turnovers, amazing stats, stout 2nd half defenses, and the best passing performance I've seen from BYU in years. Looking forward to much ore of that (I hope). A commanding win against BSU this week and a few Top 25 tumbles could put BYU in the rankings.

E N D - Z O N E
The final BCS ranking era has begun. No surprises in week 1. Maybe after all these years of BCS bashing they are getting it right on their last campaign. Not likely - I still predict that we will have one final BCS Championship debate with multiple un-defeated teams.

Wk 07: Gotta Play the Game

This is why we play the game...Texas over Oklahoma, Missouri over Georgia and Utah over Stanford (the first Top 10 loss to a non-ranked this year). Polls, voters, sportscasters, and odds-makers be damned. None of it matters or has any effect on the outcome of the game. Wins and losses happen on the field, not in front of a 27" monitor.

Ute fans loving the upset.

BYU put together their most complete game in years, winning 38 - 20 over GaTech. With the exception of dialing it down a bit too much in the 2nd half (a common BYU mistake when leading at half-time), they showed a balanced and aggressive offense as their defense stood their ground (for all four quarters, as usual). Let's hope they can sustain this uptick in offensive performance and stingy defense as they take on 5 - 0 Houston next week.

Mizzou over Georgia was not a huge surprise. Nobody really knew if Mizzou was any good or not. They were 5 - 0 against losing teams and came into injury-riddled Georgia confident, with a chip on their shoulder for just last week being "granted" a spot in the Top 25 and yet to be taken seriously in the powerful SEC. UGA coaches along with Aaron Murray did their best with talented but inexperienced backs and receivers in their 4th of six games against ranked teams. The young but well-tested UGA defense, however, could not stop the Mizzou offense. Mizzou executed a great game plan that paid off as they head into a 3-game stretch against Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee with even more confidence.

UT fans loving the rivalry.

Mack Brown can probably keep his job for at least the rest of this year after dominating Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry. Oklahoma never lead and never found an answer. Utah continues to pull off big upsets when no one is expecting it. They probably didn't even fill their stadium after last weeks performance. But Whittingham knows how to prepare a team for the big one - and he did. They will not be over-looked by the rest of the PAC-12.

The Top 25 now has 13 undefeated teams (five hold spots 1 through 5), eight 1-loss and the entrance of the first 2-loss teams (four) this past week. The undefeated present and interesting and all too often dilemma in the BCS era: which undefeated get to go to the big dance? In this last BCS year it would only be fitting if there were one final, big time controversy over which two teams are given the opportunity to win all the marbles.

So she went to a football game...
lots of people do.

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Really...Condoleezza Rice...selected to be a member of the playoff committee? Does she blog about college football? Who is on the selection committee, selection committee?

Wk 06: It's October

October is here and the air is cooler, the games more challenging, the schedules are a little tougher, the screaming just a bit louder and the sorting is underway. Top teams will remain tops until that one week when things just don't click. And the behind-the-scenes teams we've been wondering about will begin making their mark or just fade away.

Gotta love a good government slam.

Make a Mark or Fade Away Louisville is staying right there. Their talent and cupcake schedule will keep them in the Top 10. Then there is Baylor and Missouri and Fresno State and VaTech. They are seeing some votes and some confidence and may end up surprising us all. Baylor and VaTech won't be tested until November. Fresno has only average opponents remaining. And Top 25 new-comer Missouri will take their 5-0 mark to injury-laden UGA this weekend (then Florida, then South Carolina, then Tennessee).

BYU can't make up it's mind. I already had them down as a 10-point loss before kickoff. Maybe they are finally figuring it out...but that is what I thought after the Texas game, too. I missed the game so I can't say more than what I have read. They'll be tested this week against GaTech who held their own Saturday in a loss to Miami.

Grunge gray? Just not Tennessee.

Georgia...back-to-back heart attack wins can drive a man to drinking. Two weeks, two games, two down-to-the-wire close wins. In both games UGA held the lead or a tie until the final two minutes. Both games required a two minute drive to win or force OT. In both games UGA lost key starters to injuries (the SEC's best RB against LSU and then his back-up and two receivers and their punter in the Tennessee game). Georgia is not known for their depth at key positions and the inexperience showed, but they didn't give up. They showed true mental toughness in this win. Aaron Murray was calm and collected as he led those 2-minute drills down-field the last two weeks - never flinching. A true leader who showed faith in his teammates, experienced or not, just as his coaches did him.

E N D - Z O N E

Black vs White. Devils vs. Catholics.

Was this fashion week? Call me boring, old-fashioned or whatever but I just have an issue with new unis that do not show at least some semblance of tradition or logos or colors. I like an updated look and maybe even a periodic wholesale change - as long as it is still obvious who the team is. Tennessee looked like a grunge team in gray (at least they kept their T helmet). Notre Dame looked like a bunch of shiny white and gold and lime green (not Irish green) pansies scared to get dirty. ASU's helmets were interesting and Maryland...well I don't even know what to say. They have tried different colors and different logos and schemes adn I don't think any of it has worked.

A no-see-um helmet logo?

These guys are on the same team?